T

Victorian Early

Years Learning

and Development

Framework

Evidence Paper

Practice Principle 7: Assessment for learning

and development Authored for the Department of Education

and Early Childhood Development

by Rachel Flottman, Lucinda Stewart &

Collette Tayler

2

Practice Principle 7: Assessment for learning and development

The Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework guides early

childhood professionals’ practice in Victoria. The Victorian Framework identifies

eight Practice Principles for Learning and Development (Practice Principles). The

Practice Principles are based on the P-12 Principles of Learning and Teaching, the

pedagogy from the national Early Years Learning Framework, and are informed by

the latest research.

The Practice Principles are interrelated and designed to inform each other. They

are categorised as Collaborative, Effective and Reflective:

Collaborative

1. Family-centred practice

2. Partnerships with professionals

3. High expectations for every child

Effective

4. Equity and diversity

5. Respectful relationships and responsive engagement

6. Integrated teaching and learning approaches

7. Assessment for learning and development

Reflective

8. Reflective practice

These Evidence Papers document the research that underpins each Practice

Principle. The content of the Evidence Papers will be developed into a series of

practical guides – Practice Principles in Practice – that will provide practical advice

to early childhood professionals on how to align their practice to the Practice

Principles.

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Practice Principle 7: Assessment for learning and development

Contents Executive Summary ......................................................................................................................... 4

Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 6

What do we mean by ‘assessment for learning and development’? ............................... 7

Why is assessment important in early childhood learning and development? ......... 8

Assessment as learning helps to make children’s learning visible to themselves ............ 9

The process of assessment can empower families as key agents in their child’s

learning ............................................................................................................................................................ 9

How do we achieve best practice? ........................................................................................... 10

Effective assessment values cultural perspectives of children’s learning ......................... 10

Effective assessment incorporates children’s views on their learning ............................... 10

Effective assessment takes families’ perspectives into account ............................................ 11

Effective assessment is meaningful for children when it is authentic ................................ 11

Effective assessment uses multiple approaches that are appropriate for each child’s

competency .................................................................................................................................................. 12

Multiple that assessments occur over time and are holistic contribute to a complete

picture of each child ................................................................................................................................. 13

Professionals take objective, non-judgemental and accurate assessments of children’s

learning and development..................................................................................................................... 14

Implications for achieving the best outcomes for children ............................................ 15

Methodology .................................................................................................................................... 17

References ........................................................................................................................................ 18

Executive Summary

The Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (2009)

recognises the importance of early childhood professionals undertaking

assessment as a core part of effective practice. Early childhood professionals assess

children’s learning and development to develop a strong understanding of each

child’s strengths, abilities and interests. The information that professionals collect

and analyse through the assessment process informs the decisions they make to

advance children’s learning and development.

Early childhood professionals approach assessment in different ways. Early

childhood educators routinely take observations to better understand children’s

strengths, abilities and interests. Maternal and Child Health nurses undertake

assessments of children’s health and development according to the Key Age and

Stage Framework. Allied health professionals working in early childhood

intervention services use a range of professional and clinical assessment tools to

identify children’s strengths and design programs that best support each child’s

learning and development.

Assessment practice can be arranged into three categories: assessment for

learning; assessment of learning and assessment as learning . Assessment for

learning involves professionals analysing data about the child’s strengths, abilities

and interests and making inferences from it which assists them to make decisions

about programs for children every day. Assessment for learning is identified in the

literature as essential to improving outcomes for young children. Assessment of

learning assists professionals to develop a picture of each child’s strengths, abilities

and interests at a point in time. Finally, assessment as learning occurs when

information about children’s own learning and development progress is provided

to them as feedback on their learning activity. Assessment as learning is identified

in the literature as important in supporting children’s self-efficacy and self-esteem.

Effective assessment is responsive to individual children. That is, it involves tools

and approaches that are appropriate to individual children and are undertaken in

settings familiar to them. They must also be undertaken regularly and multiple

times to ensure a more accurate picture is generated at a point in time, but also so

that growth and progress are captured. Importantly, as children are active

participants in their own learning and families are experts on their own children,

effective assessment processes must include children and families’ views of

learning, as well as other professionals’ views as appropriate.

The implications for practice informed by the research and detailed in this Paper

are:

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• Early childhood professionals require the knowledge and skills to undertake

non-judgemental assessments of children’s learning and development

• Assessment needs to be undertaken collaboratively with children, families

and professionals

• A culture of evidence-based program and practice decisions must be

promoted

• Effective assessment is dynamic and ongoing, just as children’s learning and

development is dynamic

• A systematic and rigorous approach is needed to support systematic

assessment of children’s learning and development across services

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Introduction

The Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework recognises the

importance of early childhood professionals assessing children’s learning and

development to provide essential information about a child’s abilities, interests and

culture to inform their practice and program decision-making. It states that:

Assessment is designed to discover what children know and understand, based on

what they make, write, draw, say and do. Early childhood professionals assess the

progress of children’s learning and development, what children are ready to learn

and how they can be supported.

All children benefit when assessment reflects a whole-child approach, providing an

holistic view of learning and development. Early childhood professionals use a

range of assessment tools, processes and approaches to build on prior learning,

avoid duplication and add value. Early childhood professionals understand that

families play a vital role in their children’s learning and development.

Early childhood professionals are aware of the health and wellbeing of the family

when planning for the child’s learning and development. Early childhood

professionals assess children’s learning in ways that:

• inform their practice

• include children’s views of their own learning

• are authentic and responsive to how children demonstrate their learning and

development

• draw on families’ perspectives, knowledge, experiences and expectations

• consider children in the context of their families and provide support to

families when necessary

• value the culturally specific knowledge embedded within communities about

children’s learning and development

• are transparent and objective, and provide families with information about

their children’s learning and development, and about what they can do to

further support their children

• gather and analyse information from a wide range of sources to help them

assess and plan effectively

• provide the best possible advice and guidance to children and their families.

(VEYLDF p. 13)

Assessment in early childhood is not a new practice. Early childhood professionals

use a range of assessment tools to identify children’s interactions, conversations,

ideas and expressions in order to better understand each child’s strengths, abilities

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and interests. Early childhood educators often use observation techniques to

record children’s learning. Allied health professionals, such as maternal and child

health nurses and early intervention professionals, are experienced at using clinical

assessment tools to understand a child’s capabilities and possible development and

health needs, also with the view to designing a program of support to promote that

child’s learning and development.

Recent evidence reinforces the effectiveness of objective and systematic

assessments of children’s learning and development undertaken by early childhood

professionals in order to inform responsive programs that support children’s

learning and development.

This Evidence Paper explores research related to assessment practice in the

context of early childhood services. Specifically it will describe why assessment is

an important feature of effective practice; how early childhood professionals can

integrate assessment into their daily work with children; and what the implications

of the research are for practice.

What do we mean by ‘assessment for learning and development’?

Assessment practice in education and care can be arranged into three categories:

assessment of learning and development; assessment for learning and development

and assessment as learning.

Assessment of learning and development is the most common form of assessment.

This is assessment of a child’s learning at a particular point in time, and that

summarises all of the learning and development that has preceded it (Taras, 2005).

This kind of assessment can be large-scale assessment in a particular field, such as

the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN), in which an

entire population of children is assessed using a common assessment tool. It can

also be a small scale assessment within an individual early childhood setting with

the purpose of clarifying a child’s learning in order to report that learning to

families (Earl, 2003) – for example, Transition Learning and Development

Statements.

Assessment for learning and development refers to the formative assessment that

takes place in order for decisions to be made to inform the next stage of learning

(Earl, 2003). As assessment for learning informs program planning decisions about

individual children, assessments need to be taken on an ongoing and individual

basis. Assessment for learning assists early childhood professionals to make

decisions about learning programs for children every day and is identified in the

literature as essential for improving outcomes for children.

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Within the formative assessment process, early childhood professionals gather

evidence of children’s learning and development, based on what they write, draw,

make, say and do. They analyse this evidence and make inferences from it by

applying their knowledge of child development theory, the child’s social and

cultural background and their knowledge of the five Learning and Development

Outcomes in the curriculum frameworks (VEYLDF, Early Years Learning

Framework, My Time Our Place: Framework for School Age Care). They also

discuss their interpretation with the child and the child’s family, as well as other

professionals when appropriate, to develop a strong picture of the child’s strengths,

abilities and interests. Early childhood professionals then use this information to

design effective programs for children that are responsive and evidence-based

(Hattie, 2009).

Assessment as learning and development occurs when the child is involved in the

assessment process. Through this process the child has the opportunity to monitor

what they are learning and use feedback to make adjustments to their

understandings (Earl, 2003). Assessment as learning is linked to higher levels of

self-efficacy in children as they see a reward for their learning effort (OECD/ CERI,

2008).

Assessment practice can be both formal and informal. Formal assessments typically

involve reliable and valid standardised testing (Brown and Rolfe, 2005). Informal

assessments, on the other hand include non-standardised testing and the

performance on these assessments is not compared with other children (Brown

and Rolfe, 2005). They typically include interviews with children and work

sampling, and observation techniques such as running records, anecdotal records,

checklists, rating scales and event and time sampling (MacNaughton, Rolfe and

Siraj-Blatchford, 2010; NAEYC, 2009). All of these assessment tools are designed to

gather information about the progress of children’s learning and development

(Mindes, 2003) and are used to make children’s learning and development visible

(Tayler, et al., 2008).

Why is assessment important in early childhood learning and

development?

It is now recognised that age alone is not an adequate indicator of a child’s skill or

capability. There is substantial evidence of the large degree of variation between

individual children’s cognitive, social and emotional functioning and the impact of

children’s culture and environment on their knowledge, skills and understandings

(Brainerd, 1978; Feldman, 1980; Raban et al., 2007). Early childhood professionals,

therefore, cannot simply rely on children’s age to determine their capabilities and

make appropriate and responsive program decisions. It is for this reason that

assessment is so important. Through the process of assessment, professionals

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collect evidence of each child’s learning and development and analyse and interpret

it to make program and intervention decisions for extending the child’s learning

and development in the future (Bagnato, 2010).

Within this broad rationale for assessment in early childhood, the literature

identifies a range of specific purposes of assessment: monitoring children’s

learning and development progress; making decisions about programs to advance

learning and development; identifying children who may benefit from special

support or intervention; communicating a child’s learning and development with

families and other professionals; involving families in planning children’s learning

in a meaningful way; and evaluating program effectiveness; (Appl, 2000; Bagnato,

2010; Beaty, 2002; Copple and Bredekamp 2006).

Assessment as learning helps to make children’s learning visible to themselves

The evidence of children’s learning gathered through the assessment process can

be used powerfully to communicate and make children’s own learning visible to

them (Carr, 2001). This is useful in promoting children’s own self-efficacy – that is,

belief in their own ability to take actions that will achieve their goals – as they can

see returns and progress for their learning efforts (Uszynska-Jarmoc, 2007).

Assessment also supports collaborative practice with children to set challenging

learning goals. In this way, assessment is not a one-way process whereby children

learn and early childhood professionals assess, but is a dynamic process through

which professionals and children learn, analyse and adapt (Kozulin and Falik,

1995).

The process of assessment can empower families as key agents in their child’s

learning

Early childhood professionals routinely work in partnership with children’s

families and provide valuable information to them about their child’s learning and

development (Brown and Bortoli, 2010). Families are in a unique position to

provide understanding and evidence of their own children’s learning abilities

(Alasuutari, 2010). The information early childhood professionals collect through

the assessment process can also be translated to families to communicate the

progress of their child’s learning and development (NAEYC, 2009), and support

families to build on that learning. Puckett and Black (2008) and Snow and Van

Helem (2008) support this, suggesting that assessments that determine the

individual strengths and needs of children are particularly useful for families.

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How do we achieve best practice?

Effective assessment values cultural perspectives of children’s learning

Children’s learning and development is informed by their culture, values and

experiences. Moreover, cultural background and language significantly influence

the knowledge and vocabulary children have developed. Cultural background and

language also frame how, and upon what, children can be appropriately assessed

(Gullo, 2005). Professionals therefore need to be aware of children and their

family’s cultural context. On this basis Appl (2000) suggests that approaches used

for assessing children need to be culturally sensitive and interesting to children.

Using assessment tools that are culturally, linguistically and developmentally

appropriate assists the assessment process to be authentic. Further, the

assessment process is facilitated when children’s interests and daily activities are

the base for collecting relevant evidence of the child’s learning (Baldwin et al.,

2009; Gullo 2005). It is also important that professionals take account of children’s

cultural context when analysing and interpreting the assessment data, so that an

accurate picture is developed.

Effective assessment incorporates children’s views on their learning

The Early Years Learning Framework advocates that children are active

participants in their own learning (DEEWR, 2009). It is important, therefore, that

children are given the opportunity to actively contribute to assessments of their

learning and receive feedback on their learning (Seitz and Bartholomew, 2008).

There are a number of ways that children’s participation can be facilitated.

Shared sustained thinking can provide opportunities for incorporating children’s

views on their learning into formative assessment. Shared sustained thinking is an

open-ended context for exploratory learning in which ‘two or more individuals

‘work together’ in an intellectual way to solve a problem, clarify a concept, evaluate

activities, or extend a narrative’ (Sylva et al., 2010). When children describe,

explain and justify their thinking to others in shared sustained thinking, they

develop meta-cognition and ‘learn to learn’ (Siraj-Blatchford, 2009). Shared

sustained thinking provides opportunities for formative assessment because it

enables early childhood professionals to build an understanding of children’s

learning in order to make curriculum decisions.

Research also indicates that effective assessment involves children having the time

to express their opinions about what is recorded about their learning (Glazzard et

al., 2010). According to the NAEYC (2009) children’s own evaluations of their work

are an important part of their individual assessment.

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Other research suggests that there is great value in the feedback children receive

on their own learning through the assessment process. Puckett and Black (2008)

suggest that early childhood professionals should assist children to reflect on their

own learning as well as assist them to set individual goals. Tayler and colleagues

(2008) agree that children have the capacity not only to monitor their own

progress but to form goals and shape their own future learning. Through feedback

and interactions children are able to self-assess and form views about themselves

as an effective learner (Tayler et al., 2008).

Effective assessment takes families’ perspectives into account

Families play an essential role in their child’s learning and development and are a

valuable source of information about their children (Baldwin et al., 2009; Gullo,

2005; Wortham, 2008). Family’s perspectives are particularly useful in providing

information regarding a child’s history, culture, disposition and abilities in different

settings (Brink, 2002). They can also provide information about children’s

behaviour and learning in different settings. This is important with very young

children, particularly in relation to temperament and behaviour (Neisworth and

Bagnato, 2004). Including and valuing family perspectives in assessment, therefore,

is a key feature of effective assessment (Glazzard et al., 2010, Grisham-Brown et al.,

2006). This helps to develop the most accurate image of each child (Brink, 2002;

Wortham, 2008). Further emphasising the importance of family’s involvement in

the assessment process is the clear evidence that family involvement in their

children’s education has a positive impact on their children’s overall learning and

development (Beaty, 2002).

Building effective partnerships often requires early childhood professionals to

initiate and promote connections and relationships with families. They can do this

by reflecting on how much they value the contribution of parents to assessment

and whether they consider parents as partners in children’s education (Glazzard et

al., 2010). Early childhood professionals who genuinely seek to understand

families’ perspectives about learning and their children are better prepared to be

responsive within the family-professional collaboration (Puckett and Black, 2008).

Carr and Harris (2001) support this view, suggesting that the best educational

climate is collaborative. See Evidence Paper 1: Family-Centred Practice for more

information on working collaboratively with families.

Effective assessment is meaningful for children when it is authentic

Assessments are most accurate and meaningful for children when they are

conducted in the child’s natural environment, are part of everyday learning

experiences, and when they provide opportunities for feedback along the way

(Hatch, 2010; Grisham-Brown et al., 2006). Authentic assessments capture

children’s competencies and incremental developments in their skills (Baldwin et

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al., 2009). Glazzard and colleagues (2010) agree that assessing children based on

observations in their environment through independent learning and adult-

directed learning is an effective assessment process for developing a

comprehensive picture of the child’s capabilities.

Authentic assessments provide an opportunity for assessment that is free of the

adult’s own agenda. They are conducted in a variety of contexts such as home and

care settings where children are familiar and comfortable in the environment

(Losardo and Notari-Syverson, 2001) and are able to use familiar materials that are

of interest to them. This helps to facilitate and maintain children’s own

participation in the assessment (Losardo and Notari-Syverson, 2001). This form of

assessment is also effective because it provides children with opportunities to

demonstrate their skills across the various developmental domains and varying

contexts (Losardo and Notari-Syverson, 2001). This contributes to more accurate

assessment. Children’s abilities are best displayed in environments where the child

is most comfortable, providing familiarity while giving attention to culturally

appropriate materials (Losard and Notari-Syverson, 2001).

Making assessment meaningful for children involves using tools that are

appropriate for the child to use (Copple and Bredekamp, 2006). This includes

measures which allow for the full range of children’s competencies to be recorded

(Bagnato, 2007). Essentially, using measures that children are interested in is the

best approach to assessment and will yield the most valid information (Copple and

Bredekamp, 2006). Using informal measures that do not significantly interfere

with children’s normal environments and movements is most likely to reflect

children’s full capabilities and understandings (Copple and Bredekamp, 2006).

Effective assessment uses multiple approaches that are appropriate for each child’s

competency

Children learn and demonstrate their learning in many ways, and should therefore

be observed using a variety of tools and approaches and in a variety of contexts

(Gullo, 2005). The NAEYC (2009) states that assessment is most effective when

multiple methods are used to gather reliable and appropriate information about a

child’s learning and development (NAEYC, 2009). There is wide consensus in the

research literature that a variety of formal and informal assessment tools give early

childhood professionals and families a comprehensive view of children’s learning

and development (Brown and Rolfe, 2005; Glazzard et al., 2010; Grisham-Brown et

al., 2006; Wortham, 2008). Moreover, Rinaldi (2006) suggests that when educators

and families combine their shared understandings, new understandings emerge

that would not be possible from separate perspectives.

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Hatch (2010) suggests that dynamic assessments enable effective assessment of

young children. Dynamic assessment involves assessing what children are capable

of doing independently as well as what they can do with the assistance of an adult.

This creates a direct link between the teaching and assessment process (Hatch,

2010). With this in mind, assessments should be context and age appropriate, but

they should also recognise the current capabilities (Gullo, 2005) and culture (Fleer,

2002) of each child. Copple and Bredekamp (2006) agree, stating that age

appropriateness combined with assessments across different situations and

settings are likely to ensure more effective assessment practice. Recognising the

idiosyncratic nature of learning, Puckett and Black (2008) also suggest that

children should only be compared to their own developmental trajectory rather

than compared to the average behaviour for a group.

Multiple that assessments occur over time and are holistic contribute to a complete

picture of each child

Assessment for learning and development needs to take place continually, in more

than one activity or setting, in order to generate a more accurate picture of each

child’s abilities. This allows for the dynamic and ongoing nature of children’s

learning, but also recognises that children will behave in different ways, in different

contexts and on different days (Sattler, 1998). By gathering data across a period of

time, early childhood professionals gather a complete picture of each child’s

capabilities and record change and growth over time (Allen, 2007). By collecting

these data as they occur over time, early childhood professionals can later apply

their professional knowledge to analyse the evidence to create a detailed picture of

the child’s capabilities (Bagnato, 2007). From this rich source of evidence,

professionals can make accurate inferences about each child’s capabilities and their

rate of learning and development. These inferences can serve to inform an

evidence-based program that advances each child’s learning and development.

Gullo (2005) states the need for continual and comprehensive (or holistic)

assessment. Continual assessment occurs when children are assessed over time

with the view of tracking their progress. Baldwin, Adams and Kelly (2009) highlight

the importance of continual assessment for the purposes of making decisions about

individual development, learning programs and further assessment. Copple and

Bredekamp (2006) agree that ongoing assessment of children’ progress is central

to planning and helps early childhood professionals to know the children with

whom they work.

Holistic assessment allows early childhood professionals to explore and assess the

many aspects of children’s learning and development in different contexts,

environments and relationships. Holistic assessment enables professionals to

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develop a strong picture of the child’s learning and development across all outcome

areas.

Professionals take objective, non-judgemental and accurate assessments of children’s

learning and development

To be effective in gathering evidence of children’s learning and development, early

childhood professionals need to be effective, accurate and informed observers

(Mindes, 2003). It is important that the evidence collected through various forms of

assessment reflects each child’s abilities, and how they approach learning, as well

as the outcomes of their efforts (Puckett and Black, 2008). Early childhood

professionals, therefore, must be able to effectively observe children, choose the

best method to record these observations and apply their professional expertise to

interpret this evidence of learning and development (Mindes, 2003). The

observation skills of early childhood professionals are essential in providing a base

for a supported and responsive curriculum (Baldwin et al., 2009); this includes the

ability to critically reflect on the methods of observation (MacNaughton, 2003).

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Implications for achieving the best outcomes for children

1. Early childhood professionals require the knowledge and skills to

undertake non-judgemental assessment

Although early childhood professionals, in particular educators, are experienced at

taking observations of children, a more robust, systematic and objective style of

assessment is called for within the VEYLDF. Early childhood professionals should

access clear information on what and when to assess. Further, they need to develop

skills in taking objective assessments through recording what children actually do,

say, make write or draw, analysing the data and making informed inferences from

this based on their professional knowledge and knowledge of the VEYLDF.

2. Assessment needs to be undertaken collaboratively with children,

families and professionals

Children are active participants in their own learning and co-construct knowledge

with early childhood professionals. Families are experts in their own children and

bring with them a great deal of insight into their children’s strengths, abilities and

interests. Embedding child and family perspectives of learning and developing into

the assessment process is therefore essential for effective practice.

3. A culture of evidence-based practice decisions must be promoted

Strong leadership within early childhood settings supports early childhood

professionals to use analyse evidence of children’s learning and development

effectively and to draw clear inferences from it. Early childhood professionals need

to be able to work collaboratively with their colleagues and other professionals

who support children in order to develop a complete picture of each child and form

a clear view about planning for development. They must also be supported to

explain the assessment process to families, working collaboratively with them in

the learning process.

4. Effective assessment is dynamic and ongoing, like children’s learning and

development

Children’s learning and development is dynamic and ongoing. Their behaviour,

interests and capabilities vary with different people, different settings and on

different days. Children experience periods of rapid growth and change, and they

experience periods of consolidation where it may appear that little is happening.

Assessment processes need to reflect the dynamism and ongoing nature of

children’s learning and development. This means that early childhood

professionals document evidence of children’s learning regularly, and when making

inferences from the data, consider evidence collected from a range of settings using

a range of assessment tools.

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5. A systematic and rigorous approach is needed to support systematic

assessment of children’s learning and development across services

Early childhood professionals are experienced at collecting evidence of children’s

learning and development through anecdotal records such as observations,

learning stories, and running records. Snow and van Hemel (2008), however,

advocate for the application of a more systematic and rigorous form of assessing

children’s learning and development. This process would see children’s learning

and development being assessed across the services in which they participate,

giving a more complete picture of their learning and developmental trajectory. This

requires collaboration between early childhood professionals and a mutual

acknowledgement of expertise and varying professional approaches to creating

and using assessment for learning and development (Ashton et al., 2008).

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Methodology

This Paper is based on a review of national and international literature published

over the last twenty years. Literature was obtained by using the University of

Melbourne’s on-line database. Where journal articles cited older references that

appeared to be relevant to the topic at hand, these references were also

investigated, whether primary or secondary research material. Also, longitudinal

studies and theories of early childhood education were explored as their relevance

became apparent through the research.

Peer reviewed ratings of “very good” and “excellent” were prioritised.

Databases searched:

A+ Education (Informit)

Web of Science

PsycINFO

Academic Search Premier (EBSCO)

ERIC (CSA)

Web of Science

JSTOR

Wiley Interscience Journals

The following search terms were used:

• assessment for learning and development

• assessment for teaching

• authentic assessment

• progress monitoring

• effective planning and programming

•

The search terms were combined with the keywords ‘early childhood’ and

‘children’ to limit results to literature relevant to this paper.

18

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